Anime Central (ACen) is Chicago’s and the Midwest’s largest anime, manga and Japanese popular culture convention. The convention is currently held in Rosemont, IL, less than 30 minutes from downtown Chicago.

As part of its mission, ACen brings fans together with guests from the Japanese and US sectors of the anime and manga industry, as well as gaming, cinema, and Asian culture personalities. The event includes a huge exhibit hall, a massive video game room, concerts, dances, educational panels and workshops, premiere screenings, autograph sessions, 24-hour video rooms, tabletop gaming and much, much more!

Latest News

Greetings Friends and Fans! Thinking about asking for, or gifting an ACen membership this holiday season? We’ve bring back the gift a membership program available starting December 1st and closing December 23rd at midnight, where we can help you with the gifting processes. How will this work? Follow these steps to enjoy sweet holiday gifting success:

1. Know the recipient’s first name, last name, address, gender, birthday, and phone number.
2.Read more

ROSEMONT, IL – Anime Central is proud to announce our attendance figures from our 2014 convention held May 16th-18th,2014. We had an amazing year and we were proud to host so many unique events and exhibits. In attendance this year we had 29,675 unique individuals at our event, with a gate attendance of 81,325. Next year our event will be held May 15th-17th, 2015 at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare and the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL.Read more

Once again, ACen is bringing back the Guidebook app! Improve your experience by taking the schedule, maps, Twitter updates and more with you on your phone or mobile device. Available for iOS, Android, Blackberry and web-enabled devices, completely free.Read more

We are pleased and excited to announce that the the World Cosplay Summit will be holding the American national final round at Anime Central! Pairs cosplay teams from qualifying rounds across the country will appear, showcasing the best American craftsmanship and stage performances. They will compete for the honor of representing the United States in a televised event at the 2014 World Cosplay Summit in Japan.Read more

Congratulations to Natalie S. from Oswego, IL. for winning the 2014 Got Soap? t-shirt slogan contest! The saying for our 17th anniversary will be: “A Wild Soap Appears! What will you do? A: Lather B: Apply Bubbles C: Add Water D: Run Away!” Thank you to everyone who participated in this years’ contest! We sure had fun hosting and and we hope you had fun suggesting and voting for it! Don’t forget to drop by the official Anime Central Merchandise booth in May and pick up one of these fantastic shirts!